Team CBLT V3
by rcon11
Summary: Weiss's betrayal has done more than piss Bruna off. Her actions has now set in motion a plan that cannot be stopped. Castleton and Sapphire plot in the shadows, but to what end? But this plan puts Bruna at a new crossroads. Will she reconcile with her old friends; or is it her turn to stab them in the back? Conway is on the warpath, so nobody should dare stand in their way.
1. introduction

Castleton was alone in a windowless room in an underground bunker. A screen across the room flickered to life to reveal Sapphire on the other end. "Castleton" she said "it is good to see you, how are things on your end"? "Not going well" he replied "the Vale council has refused my pleas for the reinstatement of the embassy and more recently, my phone calls". "Can't Ozpin help"? she asked. "The council has removed him from his duty as the head of security for the Vytal Festival, and replaced him with Ironwood" he said "not to mention that Ozpin's position as headmaster is under heavy scrutiny and trust in him has dwindled, he will be of no help". "He was our only hope in this whole thing" she said. "I think it is time to consider proceeding with the plan" said Castleton "how are things over at Epsilon"? "We are well stocked on soldiers, guns, and dust. If you could send more Ajax units that could be great". "I will work on it" he said "but what about the kids"? "It pains me to say this" she said "but they may be vital to the operation, I know you want to leave them out of this. They are the only people we have inside of Vale". "I understand" he said "I just wish we had other options". "We really don't" she said "at least contact Deep Knife and tell her to wait for further instruction". "I understand" he said "I'll send her a message". "I'm sorry Castleton" she said "but this is the only way". "Its okay" he said, his hands covered his face". "You know what they will call us right?" she said "terrorists, monsters, a bunch of savages". "What matters is how we do what we do" he said "that is what separates us from White Fang. I just wish Cobalt was still here". "We will find him" she said "and one day; it will all be one". Sapphire hung up and Castleton reclined in his chair and pulled out his scroll and sent a message too Deep Knife. He then closed his scroll and exited the room to see a large underground complex, the area decorated with a symbol. A black planet against a white moon, with a silver fist bursting from the planet. Everyone in the bunker was wearing hoods and masks, all decorated with the same insignia. Everyone around him stopped at the sight of him. "Attention all hands!" he yelled "we are now at phase four, begin preparations"! Everyone saluted Castleton and returned to their work. He made his way back to the room and thought "your cards are on the table Cinder; now let me show you mine". The scene shifts from the bunker to a bedroom and a scroll vibrated on a table. Barely awake somebody reached for it, it was Cerulea who read the message. She quickly read the message before being startled when Bruna noticed she was awake. "Nightmare?" Bruna asked. "Yeah" Cerulea deleted the message "just a nightmare".


	2. New Beginings

"And welcome back to our interview" said the newscaster "my name is Viola and we are here with Donut Trump. Mr. Trump before the break you were talking about the situation regarding Conway, for those just joining us now can you just recap your statements"? "Yes I will Viola" said Donut "our kingdoms recently made the right move in taking down the Conway embassies. They are just a bunch of belligerent idiots who are at the brink of collapsing, we are holding them together and they say we are oppressing them? They owe us for everything, and the dust we procure from them on a regular basis is the very least they could do to thank us. The instant we go back to treating them as Vale citizens rather than their own nation, the sooner this problem will end. But the Conway problem is still an issue within our borders". "What do you mean Mr. Trump?" Viola asked. "The children of the royal family are still walking among us" he said "they are a danger and a threat to Vale, they recently attacked Weiss Schnee and tried to murder her in cold blood! I am a personal friend of Mr. Schnee himself and they a good people". "So what do you recommend we do?" she asked. "Simple" he said "deport their frozen asses back to Conway where they belong. Those savages have no place here, and I think they are working with The Midnight Hands". "While they are most definitely a threat" said Viola "the Hand has not been confirmed to exist in the present day". "They exist all right" he said "they are hiding among us waiting to wipe us all out, and ruin the purity of Vale with their filth. Only when these savages are contained will they no longer be a threat, same thing with those filthy Faunus in the White Fang". The TV flashes off and we see CBLT in their dorm room. "That guy is an ass and a half" said Bruna. "Everything is just going downhill" said Cerulea "even after we saved that village people don't want us here". "Negative press travels faster than positive press" said Tuscan "people are more likely to act out of anger than out of pity. Staying is pointless, we should call dad and pack our things". "That seems best" said Lenna "if those idiots don't want us here maybe we should just bail". The others waited for Bruna to chime in, but nobody was expecting the explosion of emotions. "Are you guys serious!" she yelled "do you realize what happens if we fold? It means that they win and Conway gets set back even further"! "The only reason we even came here was for Cobalt" said Lenna "and since he is gone". "Forget Cobalt!" she interrupted "here is our new reason to be here; to prove everyone wrong"! "But literally everyone hates us" Lenna said "how do we do that"? "We are the only Conways beyond the city" she said "whether we like it or not we are the face of Conway; we just need to put this new face in front of everyone". "And how do we do that?" Lenna asked. "The Vytal Tournament" she said "the biggest event on the planet, and Conway has never had a team represent them in the event. We will be the first". "But Ironwood is in charge of security" said Cerulea "he will never let us participate". "We need to try" she said "and if we don't than they win. Forget the haters, forget Weiss, forget Donut; only we matter in this". "She is right" said Cerulea "if we give in Conway gets set back and losses it's voice, we cannot let them silence us". "So we are gonna talk to Goodwitch about trying out then?" Lenna asked "what if she says no". "We could get Fox to hack the list, put us in before they can remove us" said Tuscan. "No" said Bruna "if we do this it has to be legitimate, no help from Fox. Come on lets go see Glynda".

The team arrived at the Vytal tryouts, a room that was fashioned like a small colosseum with a small arena in the middle. The seats around were almost empty as most of the students had already been tested, most of the students were there to help Glynda when she tested the students. "Anyone else waiting to qualify?" she said. "We are!" yelled Bruna, who ran over. "Sorry Bruna" she said "Ironwood has made it very clear that you four cannot participate". "You let CRDL in!" said Bruna "and they are bunch of morons"! "I am sorry" said Goodwitch "but Ironwood as head of security said you are forbidden from participating". "Actually according to the Vytal Tournament regulations, he can't do any such thing" said Tuscan "it states that the head of security cannot ban people from spectating of participating in the tournament unless they have a warrant for their arrest or something similar. Since Weiss never pressed charges we are allowed to attend; go ahead and check". Bruna crossed her arms and had a smug look on her face as Glynda scrolled through the rules. "Apparently you are correct" she said "I will work on finding you an opponent". "No you will not!" Ironwood stormed in "what the heck is going on Glynda"? "Hello Ironwood" said Bruna "surprised to see me here"? "Glynda you can't seriously think it is a good idea to let this happen?" he said "they are a risk". "Says the guys shoving one to many guns into an event to celebrate peace!" said Bruna "but I don't know if it is news to you, but you can't do squat to stop us"! "He cited the regulations you wrote" said Glynda "they have a right to participate and I cannot stop them". "You four a risk to everyone in Vale" said Ironwood. "Well try and stop me!" said Bruna. "You are just like your father" he said "stubborn as a mule and only considering what he thinks is best". "And what do you think you are doing?" said Tuscan. "Your hands are tied" said Glynda "I will let them test". In that moment James had an idea "sure they can test, but on my terms. Glynda give me the list of students who qualified and lend their contact numbers". "What do you plan on doing?" Glynda asked. "If you four wanna participate" he said "then I think it's only fair if you work for it".

Hey everybody it is rcon11 here, just leaving you a little note. First of I am doing something a little different timeline wise. CBLT V#3 will be taking place in between RWBY V#2 and V#3 respectively. This is so I can conclude some plot points and set things up for V#4 which will be taking place during RWBY V#3. Another thing is that I am going to do something interesting. By the time CBLT V#3 have concluded; one of the four Conways will die. Either Cobalt, Bruna, Lenna, or Tuscan will die by the end. Anyway thank you for reading and enjoy!


	3. Battle Lines

Bruna and her team waited as Ironwood and Glynda talked and fiddled with a scroll. "What do you think they are doing?" Lenna asked. "They should be setting up our qualifying matches" said Cerulea. They hear the door open and turn to see Yang walk into the room, she was then followed by Ruby, Nora, and Weiss. The four of them were confused and made their way over the Glynda and James. Weiss saw Bruna and waved, but Bruna flat out ignored her. "Hey Goodwitch what's the deal?" Yang asked "as far as I know all of us have already passed". "I need your help" said Ironwood "team CBLT wants to enter the tournament and they need a good test fitting of their skills. You four are the perfect challenge for them. The four of you go get ready for the fights". When the four walked away Bruna stormed up to them. "I know what you are doing you smug prick" said Bruna. "You Conways believe in earning your place right?" he said "if all four of you can win than you can participate". "Fine" said Bruna "bring it on".

The other four had returned and the matches were set. It would be Nora and Lenna, Cerulea and Yang, Ruby and Tuscan, and lastly Weiss and Bruna. Nora and Lenna took to the arena first and their aura bars flashed onto the screen. "Victory rules are either via ring out or aura depletion" said Glynda "begin". Nora immediately leaped towards Lenna and swung with her hammer. Lenna rolled out of the way and sprayed Nora with her shotgun, sending her flying. Lenna than leaped toward Nora with her machete drawn. Nora swung across with her hammer, but Lenna used her semblance the phase through Nora's hammer and began a series of swift blade strikes. Nora than triggered an explosion with her hammer swing and sent Lenna right to the edge of the ring. Lenna barely had enough time to roll out of the way when Nora attacked again. Lenna saw her moment and quickly rolled behind Nora and blasted with her pistol; Nora fell forward and beyond the ring. "Nora loses via ring out" said Glynda "Lenna qualifies". Lenna and Nora shook hands, but Nora winked for some reason and walked away. "Next match is Cerulea and Yang" said Glynda "get ready and begin". Yang made a beeline for Cerulea immediately. Cerulea whipped up a gust of wind using her weapon and threw Yang back. Cerulea than split her weapon up and used a whirlwind to fly into the air and came down with a kick. Yang rolled out the way just in time a sucker punched Cerulea across the ring. You could see Yang cringe as Cerulea just barely recovered using a whirlwind. Cerulea used her momentum to crash into Yang, causing a ring out. "Well you got me" said Yang, and she walked off. Bruna could tell something was fishy, but she stopped to watch Ruby and Tuscan's fight. Ruby immediately rushed in towards Tuscan, Tuscan put up a short barrier under Ruby. She tripped and slid out of the ring, ending the round in short order. Bruna had figured it out, she walked into the ring with Weiss. "Ready, go!" said Glynda. Weiss and Bruna connected in the center of the ring. "I know what you did" said Bruna "you told the others to throw their fights". "I just want you to forgive me" she said "I know how important this is to you". "Then why did you do this?" Bruna asked "I wanted to win fair to prove a point to everyone, you are literally making everything worse. Do you seriously think that Ironwood hasn't caught on yet"? "Well what do you want me to do?" Weiss asked. "Give it your best" said Bruna "make me enjoy beating you". Bruna dissipated and a bomb was left behind. It detonated and sent her backwards, Bruna than kicked her airborne and unleashed a series of quick combos before sending her into the ground. "Get up!" said Bruna "make me work". Bruna was interrupted when she moved her head out of the way to dodge a strike from Weiss. Weiss's face contained a mix of grief and fury. "That's more like it" said Bruna. Weiss attempted to capitalize with another strike but Bruna used her dust to dodge Weiss's attack and slip behind. She then slammed Weiss in the back with a kick and sent her across the floor. "Get up!" said Bruna "I want to enjoy this". "Why won't you just forgive me?" said Weiss "just let me do this for you"! "Enough!" said Ironwood "it has been made clear that Bruna has manipulated her opponents into throwing the match. Never thought I would see a Conway stoop so low". "That was all her!" said Bruna. "Why would a Schnee help a Conway?" he said "what makes it more evident is the fact is that Weiss was the only one who went all out". "This cannot be happening!" said Bruna "why do you keep making everything worse"? "Stop yelling at each other!" said Ironwood "my decision is clear; CBLT will not be participating". "Ironwood!" somebody yelled. Phoena walked into the classroom, she was not happy. "Phoena, what are you doing here?" he asked "I didn't send for you". "I wanted to figure out where you set up my quarters, Ozpin said I would find you here". "We can talk about that later" he said. "Sure we can" she said "but I want to tell you a story you should be all too familiar with". "Can we do this later?" he asked. "Zip it" she said "once upon a time a Faunus wanted to enter the Vytal tournament. The people in charge said she was forbidden because her parents were members of the White Fang". "But this is different" he said. "A general than came in and said that she was not a threat at all" she said "and should be allowed to participate despite the risks. Have you any memory of what you did that day? Why are doing the same thing to them"? "You didn't try to kill one of the students!" he said "and you are out of line; I am your superior"! "Well you are out of you mind" she said "you brought me here to advise you on security and in my opinion; these four are not a risk at all. You can stand there and continue to be a hypocrite, or we keep going down the rabbit hole". Ironwood paused; he was stuck in corner with Phoena. "Let them in Glynda" said Ironwood. "Already done" Glynda said "congratulations CBLT, your kingdom should be proud of you". "We shall talk about your position later" Ironwood said to Phoena. The general made his way out of the room. "Thanks a million Phoena" said Bruna. "Consider it as thanks for helping me with that village" she replied "I owe you guys a ton more for that. Don't hate on him too hard though, he has everyone's best interests at heart". "Strange way of showing it" said Cerulea. "You guys better get ready for the tournament" she said "come and find me and I'll teach you guys a couple of tricks. See you around". When Phoena made it to the door somebody on the other side opened it. Blake was coming into the classroom to see where her team went and time slowed down as she locked eyes with Phoena. "Excuse me" Phoena walked around Blake and made her way out, while Blake was visibly shaken. RWBY and the others filed out, and CBLT left through another door.

Blake shot awake, something felt wrong. She looked around the room for anything out of the ordinary. Everyone was still in bed, none of the furniture was moved, and Zwei was barely hanging off the side of Ruby's bed out like a light. "Must have been nothing" she thought. She lied back under her covers and tried to go back to sleep. As she was closing her eyes she thought she saw something on the ceiling above her. A reasonably large spider was just above her bed. She rubbed her eyes, maybe it was just her imagination. The spider was still there, so she threw one of her pillows at it and reduced it to a black spot on the ceiling. She was about to go back to sleep when the spot seeming peeled itself off the wall and took the form of a bird, it landed on her bed. She grabbed her pillow and swatted at it again, the bird reformed again. Soot was all over her pillow, and she was filled with fear. The bird flew over to her door and dissipated into ashes which flew under the door. Blake opened the door and left the room. She followed the bird through the halls and into the garden, Phoena was waiting for her. The bird turned into a sphere and floated in between them. "Do you know who I am?" Phoena asked. Blake did not answer. "Well I don't blame you" said Phoena "it has been quite some time Blake". "Why are you here?" Blake asked "you are dead; I watched you die"! "You watched the old me die" Phoena responded "and for a time you could say I was dead. But the memory stayed with me; it tortured me. You can't just bury what people do to you; even if it wasn't just to you". "I am not a part of them anymore" said Blake "like you I'm trying to start over". "That's where the similarities end" she replied "you don't get to walk away from what you did, she was just a little girl"! The ball of ash took the form of a small Faunus girl. "She had a whole life ahead of here" said Phoena "and you took all of that away; you and your sadistic friend". "I never laid a hand on her" said Blake "I hated what they did to her". "I found the tapes" said Phoena "raided a compound a while back and found some files about Project Black. You simply watched, you let this happen to her and did nothing to stop it. You have no right to say you felt bad for her, because just stood there and watched. I also found some other files detailing where you sent her, but I couldn't find where you keep her. Now I have you so tell me; where is she"? "You don't know where she is?" Blake was surprised. "If I knew where she is I would have straight up killed you" said Phoena "now answer me". "Agent Black was put under Adam's authority after I left" she said "I don't know what he did to her". "Shifting the blame huh? Well I have my own evidence" Phoena disintegrated the ash child "what I got from the files states that she went missing after one of her missions, but I don't know which one". "I don't know" said Blake "I'm sorry". "You don't get to be sorry" said Phoena "you are just as guilty". "I turned over a new leaf" said Blake "if you wanna kill me get it over with". "Now that would be too easy" said Phoena "do your friends know what you did"? "Are you blackmailing me?" said Blake. "I want to make you suffer Blake" said Phoena "my guess is you never told your friends that you tortured a little girl. I want to wait until it all crashes down around you, and then I will make it so you can never crawl out from the rubble. You will have nothing left, and you will beg me for death. That's when I will have my vengeance, I will give you mercy. Force you to live the rest of your life with everything important to you gone; this is the only revenge fitting for you. Because that is what you did to me; and what you did to her". Phoena made her way out of the courtyard, leaving a shaken Blake behind.


	4. Reforge

The scene opens on Ozpin's office; Ironwood and Phoena are meeting with Ozpin and Glynda about yesterday's events regarding CBLT. "It was wholly unprofessional what he did" said Phoena "he had no right to prevent those four from participating". "My job is to ensure that those who attend the Vytal Festival will be safe" said Ironwood "if that involves a few pissed off Conways then so be it"! "Ironwood we have already debated this to death" said Goodwitch "CBLT has every right to participate, and I see no point in dragging this on". "Thank you" said Phoena "this man has clearly lost his mind. Is there anything else I can do"? "I would like to speak privately with the general Phoena" said Ozpin "unless you have anything else to say"? "I think I got my point across" said Phoena "see you guys later". Phoena made her exit, and Ironwood made the first move. "I know what you are thinking" said Ironwood "but this is the best course of action to ensure everyone's safety". "Are you sure?" said Glynda "you do know that Castleton is probably keeping tabs on this right"? "Which is why I need to do this" said Ironwood "I cannot run any risk of Castleton getting involved in the festival". "For a man of strategy, you are pretty terrible at moving your pieces" said Glynda. "Doing what you are doing would further compromise the safety of the festival" said Ozpin "there are three sides here; Conway, the White Fang, and us. None of the three have allied with one of the other two in order to destroy a common enemy". "But Conway hates White Fang much more than us" said Ironwood "if anything they see White Fang as a greater threat". "Are you sure?" said Ozpin "think of the situation from Castleton's point of view, who is the greater enemy? The terrorists who pillage and bomb; or the one with his children in arms reach"?

Weiss made her way to the door, she was reluctant to knock. She swallowed her fear and tapped the door twice. "Hello?" Tuscan asked "who is there"? Weiss was too scared to answer and there was silence. "I know you're out there" he said "I see your feet under the door". "It's me" she said. There was more silence, Weiss was ready to head back down the hall. "Come in" he said. The door unlocked and Weiss answered, the tall boy shut the door behind her. Weiss looked around and found that the others were not present. Tuscan sat down at a desk with his chest next to his chair, fiddling with something on his desk. "Where is Bruna?" Weiss asked. "The others went dust shopping" said Tuscan "gave me some time to myself. Now, why are you here"? "I wanted to say sorry" she said. Tuscan let out a sigh of exasperation "there is a saying Weiss, sometimes the best move is no move at all". "But I can't stand the idea of her hating me" said Weiss. "Yet you went and did what you did" said Tuscan "maybe you only care because for once; the blood feud is right in your face. You never cared for Conways before, why should you now"? "I didn't care for Faunus before, but then I met Blake" she said "and yes I didn't care for Conway; but then I met Cobalt. Cobalt actively came to me; and asked me to change the world with him. A part of me believed in him, and maybe I still do. I think that I need to work hard for this just like he did, if I want her to forgive me; so we can make something new". "If that is your plan" he said "you are doing it all wrong. You are trying to build this relationship based on the idea that there was no other relationship beforehand, come over here". Weiss looked at what was on the desk, it was a collection of small metal figurines. All of them were of things and people Tuscan has seen, and they were all no bigger than her thumb. She saw buildings like the CCT tower; and she saw a little metal Weiss several other classmates complete with their weapons. "What are these?" Weiss asked "there so pretty". "A hobby of mine" he said "you know what these are made out of? It all scrap metal; pieces of metal meant to be thrown away forever. What I did here was take trash and turn it into something beautiful, but I never forget the garbage it came from. Ruby came from one of Crescent Rose's shell casings, Jaune came from an empty soup can, and your's came from and empty Schnee dust container. That what you need to do with Bruna, build that relationship not from an apology but from remains from before". "But how do I do that?" she asked. "Bruna lost something very important to her because of the Schnees and she blames your family for it" he said "she wears it every day and it fills her with grief. Build this new relationship from the grief your family caused her, and she will begin to forgive you. Do you understand what you have to do"? "I think I understand" said Weiss "thank you". "Here, take this" Tuscan gave Weiss the mini Weiss "there is a thing on the top for key chains. I can always make another one". "Thanks Tuscan" said Weiss "I am glad you are on my side". "I am on Bruna's side, not your's" said Tuscan "but I know someone who could be". Tuscan handed Weiss a piece of paper with a phone number on it. "He will have everything you need" said Tuscan. "Thank you Tuscan" said Weiss "see you".

Fox was sitting at his desk going through files on his scroll. "Conway firewalls are a tough nut to crack" said Fox "come on Castleton, tell me where Cobalt is". Ebony and a masked henchman barged in, and Fox closed his scroll "what do you guys want"? "Our friend here got a customer, the caller id says she is high profile" said Ebony "but she will only negotiate with you". "She says she will pay well" said the henchman. "What exactly does she want?" Fox asked. "She will only talk to you" said Ebony. "Throw her out" said Fox "this is clearly a sting op". "She is very high profile" said the henchman "we are talking checkbook in the front pocket; she is LOADED". "Fine" said Fox "connect me to her". Ebony fiddled with her scroll "connected her to line five". "Thank you" he said "now beat it; both of you"! Ebony and the henchman left and Fox put on a mouthpiece, he hummed a bit to test the voice changer. He then connected to line five and turned on speaker "this is The Fox what the hell do you want"? "My name is Weiss Schnee" she said "and I need to you to help me". "How did you get this number?" Fox asked. "A friend gave it to me" said Weiss "now I need you to help me help a friend". "For somebody as big as you, it must be pretty important Ice Queen" said Fox "how much are you willing to pay"? "As much as it takes" said Weiss. "I like you Ice Queen" said Fox "now let's get down to business".


	5. Damsels

It has been four days since Weiss and Tuscan talked, team CBLT were in their dorm room discussing plans for the Vytal Festival. "So I talked to Phoena" said Bruna "and she said that she will try to make it so instead of representing Beacon in the tournament, we will be representing Polaris Battle Academy in Conway". "That's great" said Cerulea "get that brand recognition going. We can start changing people's ideas that way". "We can also pave the way for future Polaris students to participate in the tournament" said Tuscan "this could be the boost we need to win the hearts of Vale". In that moment the door burst open, splinters showered the room. Yang came through the open door with Ruby and Blake behind her. "I knew you were mad!" said Yang "but I never thought you would stoop this low". "There is such a thing as knocking" said Bruna. "What did you do to her?" Blake asked. "Why don't you ask her yourselves?" said Bruna. "I wonder what lie she told you this time?" said Lenna. "Guys please" Ruby tried to calm everyone down "Weiss is missing; she has been gone for two days". "And apparently four days ago she was in this room talking to you guys" said Yang "so where are you keeping her before I tear you apart"! "I don't know what you are talking about!" said Bruna "we don't have her prisoner, and we haven't spoken to each other in ages". "We talked for a bit" said Tuscan "but I didn't capture her". "Well somebody tell me something" said Yang "or else"! Yang's scroll began to ring, and she answered "hello"? Everyone could hear somebody else talking to Yang. "Okay I am going to put you on speaker buddy" said Yang. "Not yet!" yelled Fox "you barely gave me enough time to put the voice changer on". "Who is Fox?" Ruby asked. "A friend of mine" said Yang "now tell everyone what you told me". "Okay first of all, Weiss told me to call you guys when the time was right" said Fox. "So you know where she is?" Blake asked. "Yeah she is just fine" said Fox "she got herself captured by the White Fang is all". The room was silent. "You see I didn't capture her" said Bruna "now get out". "You are just telling us now?" asked Yang "why didn't you stop her". "She gave me her bank account number and let me clean her out" he said "I can live like a freaking king right now". "There is a chance she got in over her head" said Blake "we have to break her out". "Weiss figured something might happen, she is a smart girl for a spoiled princess" he said "but there is one thing wrong with her contingency, we will need to discuss this face to face. I don't trust this connection being secure enough; I would hate for some hunter to pinpoint where I am based. I'm sending Yang my current safe house location, we will meet there". "Don't worry Fox" said Yang "team RWBY is on the way". "About that" said Fox "Weiss asked for Bruna and her crew to come rescue her too, said it was very important for Bruna to be there". Fox hung up and Yang put her scroll away "And why should I let you come?" said Yang. "Think about it blondie" Bruna replied "chances are Weiss is well protected, the three of you are FAR from enough to rally a rescue. And if anybody is gonna kill Weiss, it's gonna be either me or Cobalt. And you are looking at the only person here to semi-successfully raid a White Fang compound". "Are you saying you are in charge or something?" Yang asked. "I'm not saying that" Bruna replied "all I am saying is that without me, you don't get a rescue". "Fine" said Yang "pack your crap and let's go". "A rescue mission huh?" somebody said. Phoena was in the doorway and the group froze. "How long were you there?" Ruby asked. "Enough" said Phoena "a rescue operation is way too dangerous for a bunk of kids; I should move this over to Ironwood and he could take care of it". "Please Phoena?" said Lenna. "But on the contrary Ironwood would probably sooner send an army than a stealth mission" Phoena said "and Weiss would probably end up dead because Ironwood doesn't seem like he knows how to deal with "delicate" situations. Plus I hate that asshole. So here is what I want, and then you can ride off to save your friend". "Anything!" said Yang. "That I come too" she said "I have commando experience so this kind of mission is child's play for me, so let's go find this Fox guy. I promise to not turn him in". Phoena lead the group out of the room, but Tuscan and Bruna remained. "What did you two talk about?" Bruna asked. "I would want to spoil the surprise" said Tuscan.

Phoena stopped her Bullhead at the entrance to an abandoned outpost. "This is the coordinates right?" Phoena asked. "This is what he gave us" said Yang. "It's an old Conway military base" said Blake. "How do you know?" Bruna asked. "You can see eroded emblems all around" said Blake "this one probably dates back to the Faunus War". The group disembarked and got inside the outpost. "There are no Grimm in sight" said Phoena "somebody is here; stay sharp". The instant her sentence ended red laser points trailed on each of them. Snipers came out of active camo with fingers on the trigger. Each of their faces were covered by a half white and half orange mask. "Get ready for a fight" Phoena got her gauntlet ready. "Put your rifles down" Ebony came into view "these are our guests". The snipers re-cloaked and the lasers disappeared. "The Fox is waiting inside" said Ebony "we have lots to talk about".


	6. Distress

Ebony lead the group inside, guards escorted them inside. Ebony was holding her briefcase that hid her weapon. Ebony was taping her scroll as she led then down a flight of stairs, eventually they found themselves in a control room with masked workers all around. "I'm sorry" said Bruna "I thought we would be meeting Fox"? "That's Ebony" said Tuscan "she works with Fox". "She is also his second in command" said Yang "nice to see you again Ebony". "Always a pleasure Yang" Ebony stopped at a door "hold on". "What is it?" Bruna asked. Ebony's briefcase turned into a guandao. "Get the huntress out of here please" said Ebony "guards, take her outside". "I would enjoy watching you try" said Phoena. "No wait!" said Ruby "she is gonna help". "No chance" said Ebony "can't trust huntresses around here". "Let her in" said a buzzing voice "she could be a customer in the future". Fox opened the door, he was wearing a mask with a built in voice changer. Fox's outfit had also changed from when he and CBLT had first met, he was wearing a black jumpsuit with orange pattern detailing. "I think we need all the help we can get in this case" said Fox "and if I am feeling generous, we could become very good friends Ms. Flowers". "Really Fox?" said Ebony "fine; this is your operation. Imma go to the bar, get a drink. Let me know when it wings up". Ebony left the room, and Fox motioned for the others to follow him. "Come into my office" said Fox "and let's talk about Weiss". Fox's office was a moderately sized room with a holographic map table in the center and a computer screen up on the wall behind it. "Shouldn't you take your mask off?" Ruby asked "we are working together aren't we"? "Ruby Rose right?" Fox asked "in my business being anonymous is very important. I am a buyer and seller of information, I know plenty of people's dirty secrets from common gossip to back room politics. This makes me a very dangerous person to certain people. But enough about me, let's talk about Weiss. She wanted to wait until I was sure she was capture". "So she was captured" said Blake. "Yes" he said "but that is not all; she wanted to be taken prisoner". "Sound like Weiss to me" said Bruna "doing nothing but make bad decisions". "Why did she try to get captured?" Ruby asked. "She paid me ten thousand to not tell you why, said it was a surprise" he said "all you need to know is that she needs you to rescue her". "We don't even know where she is" said Cerulea "how are we supposed to rescue her"? "She thought about that" he said "and we had a solution". Fox activated the map table and a hologram was projected. It showed a walled compound with a few buildings, one of which had a blinking beacon on the first floor. "Before she got herself captured I gave her a modified Schnee shipping beacon" he said "that beacon there is her. And she just got here". "She has been missing for two days" said Yang "why is she only there now"? "Let me explain" said Fox "it takes a day for her to get captured and for the cronies to call the boss. And the day after they pick her up, she pops the beacon, and I collect data on the location. And here we are, now you just need to break her out". "And how do your propose we do that?" Lenna asked "we have no plan"? "I have some resources available to you that can help you out" Fox said. Fox pushed some buttons and on the computer behind him popped a picture of a USB drive and a modified Bullhead. "That Bullhead is Ebony's pride and joy" he said "it is modified with four supercharged ramjets for increased speed, afterburners, duel autocannons, and unguided rockets. She will be dropping you guys off and extracting you from the compound". "Look here though" Phoena pointed at the map "the compound is reinforced with automated AA defenses stolen from Atlas, they will take us right out of the sky". "That is where the USB comes in" said Fox "it contains a timed virus that will temporarily take down all the automated defenses, giving you enough time to escape. Some of you will have to sneak in ahead of the others to upload it into the mainframe before you guys proceed, I got some White Fang uniforms in storage in varying sizes. Though I recommend you only send the Faunus in first, to make it convincing". "Thank you Fox" said Phoena "we will get to planning". "I recommend you guys do this now" said Fox "at some point the Schnees will start to worry about Weiss; and it only a matter of time before the Fang ask for a ransom. I have done all I can, good luck". Fox left the room to give the others a chance to plan. "As the resident huntress, I am taking charge" said Phoena "and I know how to break into a Fang compound, so here is what we do. Blake, Lenna and myself will wear the disguises and infiltrate the compound. Once we plant the virus we will signal you guys to move on where Weiss is being held. Try to not raise any alarms, we don't want to give them an excuse to kill Weiss". "What if we raise an alarm?" Bruna asked. "If anybody accidently raises an alarm it would be the three of us" said Phoena "we would cause a distraction while you extract Weiss, any other question"? Nobody said anything, as they were all eager to go rescue Weiss. "Good" said Phoena "let's go". People began to file out, but Blake held Lenna back and waited until they were alone. "What's wrong Blake?" Lenna asked. "It's about Phoena" said Blake "don't tell her anything; do not trust her. She hunts White Fang whether they defected or not, we haven't been on good terms since what Weiss did but just a heads up". "Thank you" said Lenna "now let's get this over with".

The compound was quite large, much larger than the hologram made it seem. They had arrived at night. Lenna, Blake, and Phoena approached the compound in disguise. The three were all unarmed except for Phoena and her glove, Phoena carried the other weapons in a duffle bag. "Radio check" said Phoena. "Yo" said Bruna. "Over" said Ruby. "Maintain radio silence until we upload the virus" said Phoena "I will give you guys a signal if things go south". Phoena turned the radio off and adjusted her mask. "I want award winning performances" said Phoena "we are some White Fang initiates that were assigned here, just stick to that story and we will be fine. Let's go". Phoena lead the girls out of the forest towards the main gate. Only two guards were manning the post, once the group got too close one of the guards approached. "Who are you three?" he asked "we didn't get word of transfers comin in". "They are some new initiates" said Phoena "and I am their mentor. We just came from Vale". "More new guys from Vale?" the guard asked. "Let me check with command to see if you guys called ahead. "We couldn't call" said Phoena "our recent activities in Vale have made it difficult to contact other compounds. We didn't want to risk exposing your location". "I see your point" said the guard "but before you go in we need to perform a quick check; don't worry ma'am it will be quick. Just need you to prove you are Faunus". "Of course" said Phoena, she pulled her hood back to reveal her dog ears. Lenna did the same, but when Blake did it her bow was revealed. "What the hell is that?" said the guard "take the bow off". Blake hesitated for two long and the guard began to approach to remove it himself, but Phoena stopper her. "Trust me" said Phoena "she came from a very human dominated neighborhood in Vale. She needed to hide so they would leave her alone, but now she doesn't want to hide anymore. She isn't used to taking it off, but soon her fear will be replaced with bravery". "I see what you mean" said the guard "humans are an awful lot; and I don't blame you. You can take it off another time, go on in you three". "Thank you for understanding" said Phoena "let go girls". The three advanced inside and the guards returned to their posts. When they were out of earshot "any other guy would have ripped it off, we got lucky. Be quicker next time". "Got it" said Blake. "Otherwise that went exceptionally well" said Phoena "now we need to find where they control the AA defenses". "Should be in the building over there" said Lenna "but how do we get inside"? "Get your weapons out of the bag" said Phoena "maybe we can talk our way in". The two holstered their weapons and followed Phoena to the building, more guards were there. "Hold it there ladies" said the guard "hey aren't you the new guys"? "Yeah we are" said Phoena "so you heard about us"? "They are talking about you guys over the radio" said the guard "word travels fast around here". "So it does huh?" said Phoena "that's good to know. Anyway, what's this building? "Only people with authorization can get in, and new need a key card too. Like the one I got here, get me into almost everywhere around here". "Oh really" Phoena looked around and saw no other witnesses "I'll be taking that then". An ash dagger plunged into the guard while Lenna and Blake took out the rest. They hid the bodies under some stairs and Phoena pilfered the key card. They entered the control room and saw the main computer. "I'll upload it" said Phoena "watch the door". Phoena plugged the USB in and began to upload the virus. "How did they get auto turrets?" Lenna asked. "Looks like they were stolen from Atlas shipments" said Blake "we should be more careful, they might have paladins here too". "Another reason why we need to stay undetected" said Phoena. "Why are you helping us if you don't mind me asking?" said Lenna "don't you report directly to Ironwood"? "I do but not for much longer" she said "the guy is an absolute control freak, and I don't like leashes. Before I went down to you guys he was telling me that I might be replaced if I disobey him again, to hell with him though. I prefer freelance huntress work, doing things by my rules. This rescue was a chance for me to return to why I wanted to become a huntress in the first place, but by my rules. Okay it's uploaded, I'm gonna call them". Phoena got on the radio "hey guys we are good to go, move towards the beacon's location and I will meet you guys there". The three made their way out of the command center on their way to Weiss.

Bruna and Ruby had just received the okay and were making their way towards the wall. "Why don't we barge in?" Yang asked "we have to be quick right"? "If you want every soldier in there to come down on us sure" said Bruna "be my guest". "If we go in head first we risk alerting the whole base" said Cerulea "that could put Weiss at risk". "No guns until we are inside the building" said Bruna "blades only. Cerulea and I will take care of the guards on the wall, wait for us". Bruna grabbed Cerulea and activated her dust, since the two were touching Cerulea was immune to the time stop. The two held hands as they scaled the wall. Three guards were on a platform against the wall. "I'll take the two you take the one" said Bruna "deal"? "Got it" said Cerulea. Bruna lead Cerulea behind one of the guards, when she was ready she let go and Cerulea was frozen. Bruna positioned herself near the other two and turned the dust off, returning time to normal. Taken by absolute surprise Bruna and Cerulea took the guards out in a few swift strokes. The rest scaled the wall and dropped from the platform, the place where Weiss was being held was right across. "Odd" said Bruna "no guards at the door"? "Maybe Blake and the others took care of them for us?" said Ruby. "Let's head inside" said Tuscan "no use staying out here". The five entered the building and saw an awful sight. White Fang bodies scattered around the floor, as if they were torn apart. "What happened here?" Yang asked. Bruna saw a blinking light on the ground, on closer inspection it was the Schnee shipping beacon. Bruna turned the beacon off "she isn't far, look around". At that point Phoena and the others entered. "Did you guys do this?" Phoena asked. "No" said Cerulea "but someone or something did". "Look for clues then" said Phoena. The group split up to search the area, Bruna and Cerulea looked through the cells. "They are all empty" said Cerulea "but look at these two". Cerulea pointed at two cells across from each other, they were the only open cells. "Weiss could have escaped" said Bruna "but it looks like she took somebody with her". "Guys!" Ruby called out "come check this out"! Everyone went to Ruby who found a strange cell. It had two iron doors that were several inches thick, something had pried it open to escape. White Fang bodies littered the entrance, and one was inside the cell. "Who did they keep in here?" Blake asked. "Or what did they keep in here" said Phoena "and none of you found Weiss". "She broke out with somebody else" said Cerulea. "If she broke out than why was their no alarm?" said Tuscan "and how did she kill all these soldiers with her bare hands"? "Whatever was inside that vault may have done that" said Phoena "we need to search the compound she couldn't have gone far". A bright light illuminated the night sky. They watched through a window as a pillar of fire erupted from the ground across the compound, it took the form of a dragon before crashing into the ground. "What the hell was that?" said Yang. "It's him" said Bruna "I don't believe it it's really him"! Bruna ran out of the building towards the area of the explosion. "Bruna wait!" Lenna yelled. The rest chased Bruna as the whole compound was put on alert.


	7. Ignite

The following begins before RWBY and CBLT stormed the compound:

Weiss was slow to wake up, as the Fang had administered a heavy amount of drugs in order to keep her asleep. Once she had completely woken up she looked around, the Fang had thrown her into a cell. They had relieved her of her weapon and scroll, but luckily the shipping beacon was still tucked away in a hidden pocket in her skirt. "Okay Weiss" she said to herself "if they took me here, then this is where they take any of their important prisoners. I just hope they are here too otherwise; I don't even wanna think about it". She looked outside of her cell for other prisoners, it was only her and one other person in the cell across. He was laying in his cot, somehow sleeping on the filthy thing. He wore a red t-shirt under a black leather hoodie, black pants, black leather gloves, and wore black hitching boots. The hood of the hoodie could be zipped up and create a mask, using two goggle like eye pieces for vision. His hair was long and black, and was quite greasy looking. "Hello?" Weiss called out. The boy did not wake, Weiss needed another idea. She peeled a rock out of the wall with her nail and threw it into the other cell, knocking a bucket over and spilling its contents. "What the hell?" he woke up "at least give me a mop you White Fang garbage. "Sorry" said Weiss "that was me, I was trying to wake you". "Do you know what was in that bucket girly?" he said "now I got crap all over my floor. I am now literally stepping in crap right now". "I said I was sorry" said Weiss "but can you help me please find someone"? "I'm someone missy" he said "nobody else here". "It's definitely not you" said Weiss "she would never be friends with you". "Try me" he said "why the heck are you here miss"? "Weiss" she said "I am looking for a friend of a friend. Are you sure there is nobody else here"? "Just me" he said "and I don't have many friends; well I have two anyway. One is somewhere around here with me and the other; I hope she is okay". "Wait a sec" said Weiss "what is your name"? "Auburn" he said "what does that mean to you Weiss"? "Did you know a Bruna?" she asked. "Bruna Conway?" Auburn asked "yeah she was my partner, we were mercs together before I got captured. You know her"? "I am here to break you out" said Weiss. "What, you got a plan?" he asked "lay it on me". "Hadn't thought that far ahead" said Weiss "where are the prison guards". "Around the corner on break" said Auburn "so keep it down. You are going to need a card to open the cells, one of them have one". "How do I get it?" said Weiss. "I have an idea" said Auburn "one of them has a lighter. Get it to me and I can bust us out". Weiss thought of a plan, and she sprang into action. "Hey ugly!" said Weiss "get on your knees and shine my boots; you do know who I am"? "Why you" he ran up to the cell and opened the door. Weiss tackled him and quickly searched his pockets, finding the lighter. The other guard locked Weiss and the guard in a panic and Weiss threw the lighter over to Auburn before she was pinned to the ground. "Get that away from him!" the guard yelled. Auburn lit the lighter and the flame greatly expanded, as if Auburn was manipulating it. It flew quickly and melted a hole in the lock, allowing Auburn to escape. The lighter than clicked empty as Auburn had used all the fluid. The guard outside the cell was beaten into submission and Auburn quickly pilfered a pistol with which he shot the guards on top of Weiss. Weiss shrugged the corpse off and Auburn took the key card from the guard he defeated. "Good work" said Weiss "now get me out of here". "Not so fast Weiss" said Auburn "don't think I don't know; you are Weiss Schnee. The whole reason I am here is because I was doing a job for your dad. I will let you out if I am paid twenty thousand by the end of this in cash". "You really are a filthy merc" said Weiss. "A guy need to make a living" he said "and you are not escaping without my help, even if they send a rescue party". "Fine" Weiss relented "just let me out". "That's the ticket princess" Auburn swiped the keycard and let her out. "Now princess" said Auburn "if we are going to escape we need to find my weapon so I can hold your hand". "I was captured with my weapon too" said Weiss "you don't need to hold my hand". "That's cold ice queen" he said "I feel like you are going to keep surprising me. But there are still guards in this building, and without a decent weapon we can't fight our way out". "You sound like you have a plan" said Weiss. "The warden's office is down the way" said Auburn "we need to kill him in order to do the next step. How good are you with your hands"? "Not very" said Weiss "I had been meaning to work on that". "Why am I not shocked?" said Auburn "just get him out of his office and I will do the rest". Weiss needed this unsavory boy's help to escape, so she had to play along. It still surprised her that such a person would be friends with Bruna. Weiss found the office down the hall and knocked on the door. The warden opened it and stared down at the heiress. He silently grabbed her wrist and began to drag her back to her cell, Auburn was nowhere in sight. She heard a gun fire and the warden fell, Auburn dropped from the ceiling. "Why do you have this much skill?" Weiss asked "you don't seem that bright". "You are a real charmer" said Auburn "went to Polaris Battle Academy and got held back a few years, I didn't learn fast but when I learn something I got it. I was also trained in the fire arts by the Cotrone sages to harness my semblance, I just never graduated before they kicked me out of Conway". "Why did they kick you out?" Weiss asked. "I joined up with the Kamikaze mercenaries" said Auburn "that made me a criminal and I was punished with exile. At least Bruna and Amaranth came with me; ah here they are". Auburn took two keys from the corpse and handed one to Weiss. "These open a vault here in the prison" said Auburn. "Does it have our weapons?" Weiss asked. "The Fang put someone inside it a few days ago" said Auburn "they said he was too strong to get a normal cell. We bust it out and use it to break out and find Amaranth". "Who is Amaranth?" Weiss asked. "He was the other guy in our trio" said Auburn "he was Royal Guard and was in charge of protecting Bruna. They moved him a few months ago, I am not leaving without him". The two reached the vault, it was unguarded. The doors were solid steel that looked very thick, two keyholes in each door were for the keys. "Turn them both at the same time" said Auburn "ready, go"! The keys turned and the door slowly began to open. "Freeze!" several White Fang guards surrounded them at gunpoint. The duo raised their hands while two guards stopped the doors. "Cuff them and return them to their cells" said one guard "the rest of you shut that door before it gets out". Two of the guards began to fiddle with the door controls, while another leaned towards the opening in the door. "What's in there" the curious guard leaned even closer. "Get away from it!" another guard yelled. But it was too late, a giant black claw wrapped around the guard's head and dragged him inside the dark cell. The screaming was loud, but was quickly silenced. "Get it shut now!" someone yelled, but it was too late. As the doors slowly began to shut, an all too familiar beast pried the door open and charged the frightened guards. Weiss recognized the creature immediately, it was a Balroth. Weiss and Auburn jumped away, causing the shipping beacon to fall out of her skirt pocket. The monster tore apart the hapless guards, more came inside to find what the commotion was. Some tried to raise the alarm, but the beast cut them down without remorse. The beast finished its former captors, and then began to move slowly towards the two as they cowered in a corner. The beast got right in Weiss's face and sniffed her, and that's when Weiss saw it. "You're from the Emerald forest" said Weiss "Ruby said that she killed you". "Weiss Schnee" it said "we meet again". The beast's form began to recede, leaving behind a boy a bit taller than her with a dirty blanket wrapped around his face. "No need to be afraid" he said "I am more at peace with my demons these days". "You two know each other?" Auburn asked. "It does not matter" the boy said "now come with me, it is only a matter of time before more guards arrive". "Wait a sec" said Weiss "what are you doing"? "Helping you escape" the boy said "the Fang will surely kill us all is we do not move now. There should be an armory nearby, they might have our weapons there. After that you two will escape. "I'm not leaving without Amaranth" said Auburn. "We are the only prisoners in the prison" said the boy "your friend is dead. We need to escape". "Not so fast" said Auburn "you seem smart so let me lay this down. The Fang use this base to developed new weapons, they store a ton of files here for secret projects. One of them is being tested here, they call it project Oracle. They are making a machine that will predict the future". "How do you know this?" said the boy "why should I believe a merc"? "I heard the guards talking about it" said Auburn "if we don't destroy it than it remains a danger". "I'm with you Auburn" said Weiss "are going to help". "Against my better judgement, I will aid you in destroying the Oracle" said the boy. "And one more thing guy" said Auburn "what do we call you"? "Call me, Predator" he replied.

The trio stuck to the shadows outside, sneaking around patrols until they reached the armory. "Looks like no alarms were sounded" said Predator "we still have time before they find the bodies". The armory had only two guards out front. "How do we get inside?" Weiss asked. Without a second to spare Predator ripped the pistol from Auburn's hand a plugged the guards. "Hesitation brings failure" said Predator "now let go". Such a hardass" said Auburn. They pilfered the keycard from the body and opened the armor. It was a small armory for small arms and launchers, their weapons were inside a case on a wall. Predator opened the case and they retrieved their weapons. Auburn took a strange lighter and a sheathed sword. The sword was clearly not part of the ensemble, as its light blue color clashed with Auburn's look. "The sword is Amaranth's" he said "might as well bring some piece of him home". Weiss than holstered Myrtenaster and saw something familiar. Cobalt's Havoc Shards were in the case, and Predator took them and attached them to him belt. "Excuse me" said Weiss "those don't belong to you. They belong to a friend of mine". "And who would that friend be?" he asked. "Cobalt" she said "if those weapons are here than so is he. We should find him". "It's no use" said Predator "I got these from some, dumb kid who tried to kill me. Chances are you won't see him again". "Wait a sec" said Auburn "you killed Cobalt Conway"? "Something like that" Predator replied "do you hate me Weiss; do you want to kill me"? "Funny" said Weiss "I can tell if someone lies to me; a life of broken promises taught me that. But you know where he is, and I plan on making you tell me". "You can try" said Predator. "Hey!" somebody yelled outside "who left the armory open"? A guard came through the doorway, Predator pulled a Havoc Shard and blew him away. There was silence; and every White Fang outside opened fire on the armory. The three ran outside, but Auburn stopped the other two. "Guys please" he said "I got this; been waiting a long time to cut lose". Auburn zipped up his jacket and hood and inserted the lighter into a slot in his pocket. He made his was outside and faced the guards outside. He pressed a button on his jacket and red lines across his pants and jacket, the fire dust energy was surging through his clothes. His hand became engulfed in fire and he began to chuck fireballs at the Fang. The guards returned fire but Auburn dodged them and ejected fire from his boots to catapult him forward. He landed right in front of a group of guards and knocked them out with a flurry of flaming punches and kicks. More guards arrived on the rooftops and began to shoot at him. "Close the armory door!" Auburn yelled. Weiss pulled the door shut and she and Predator hunkered down. Auburn pressed another button on his jacket and the suit ignited. He began to spin and created a pillar of fire which brought him to its apex. Once he read the top he morphed it into a dragon and sent the whole thing crashing into the ground, the resulting maelstrom incinerated everyone not inside any buildings. Once the firestorm subsided Weiss and Predator emerged from the armory to find the area blackened and Auburn exhausted. "That, felt, AWESOME!" he said "I feel so alive right now". "So where is the Oracle located?" Predator asked. "Follow me to the labs" said Auburn. Weiss and Predator followed Auburn towards the labs, as alarms sounded across the compound.


	8. The Oracle

Predator, Weiss, and Auburn made a rush for the labs with the White Fang behind them. Predator had transformed and was leading the charge, soaking up bullets while the others hid behind. The lab build was quite small but around four stories tall. The entrance doors were reinforced and shut, with two Paladins flanking the entrance. "I need to open the door!" Predator yelled "kill the mechs"! Predator ran past the Paladins and got started on trying to pry open the door. "Follow my lead Auburn!" said Weiss. Weiss activated her ice dust and dodged an attack from the suit and got in between the mechs. She activated a flash freeze and froze the two mechs. She rolled out of the way and Auburn began to cook the mechs in a stream of fire. The rapid change in temperature caused their armor rupture and burst, rendering them inoperable. By this time Predator had pried open the doors, and the two followed him inside. Predator pulled the doors back into place and the three began to barricade the door. Once a sufficient amount of debris had been stacked, Predator reverted back to his human form and the three took a breather. "Will that hold them off?" said Weiss "they have mechs that can pummel through that". "If we reach the Oracle in time we won't need to worry about mechs" said Auburn. "So you plan to use to device then?" Predator asked. "Something like that" said Auburn "we need to reach the floor above, that is where we will find it". "Even if your plan works, there is still the matter of escape" Predator asked "I don't suppose you have a plan for that". "Don't have any fear" said Weiss "I was able to sneak a little something on my person. A rescue party is currently tracking me and will save us as soon as they get here". "You had a tracker on you?" Predator asked. "Who is coming to rescue us?" Auburn asked. "My teammates" she replied "along with some; acquaintances". "I really hope this doesn't blow up in my face like the last time I trusted a Schnee" said Auburn "let me see the tracker". Weiss reached into her hidden pocket but found that she had misplaced her beacon. "Darn it" she said "I must have lost it". "Its okay" said Auburn "at least your friends know where we are. The trio began to ascend a large stairwell when an explosion rocked the building, someone had breached the barricade the group had just assembled. Get up the stairs, now!" Predator yelled. They rushed to the top of the stairs as they hear an unseen pursuer bellow. Once the three reached the top, Predator engulfed his arm in black energy and slammed the top stair and sent most of the stairwell crashing down. They shut the door at the top of the stairs and barricaded it with some lab equipment. "They are relentless" said Predator "but we must find the Oracle". Auburn began looking over a still open computer, checking the info. "Looks like the lab rats got out of here before we arrived" said Auburn "they began a full data wipe, but we don't need the data. We just need to find the Oracle". "How do you know they didn't take it with them" Predator asked. "They didn't take it out the window" Auburn pointed to the crashed open windows left behind by the fleeing researchers. "So what does it look like?" Predator asked. "Kind of like a coffin" said Auburn "about the size of our masked friend here". "So; like this" Weiss said. Weiss pointed as a metal coffin with a large red light on the front face. "So let's smash it then" said Predator. "Hold on big guy" said Auburn "this thing is powered by something inside it. We need to pull it out if we want to make sure this thing stops working, I'll take care of opening it". "Good" said Weiss "I wanna talk with our friend here". Weiss pulled Predator aside as Auburn worked on opening the Oracle. "I want you to be honest with me this time" said Weiss "what do you about Cobalt"? "The Cobalt you knew is gone" said Predator "it's best for you to move on". "Don't tell me to move on!" said Weiss "the only reason I came here is to help a friend I hurt, and Cobalt wasn't just important to me but was important to her too. Bringing Auburn back to Bruna would be a good start but, maybe if I find Cobalt I can really help repair the damage I did". "Wait a second" said Predator "what did you do to Bruna"? Weiss was surprised, she never mentioned Bruna yet Predator knew of her. "I will ask you again" he was getting aggravated "what did you do to Bruna". Weiss wasn't in any position to take control, so she spilled it. "Her brother had a plan to bring peace between the Conways and the Schnees" said Weiss "this could also lead to Conway gaining more power internationally and gain independence. Then he disappeared and ruined all his hard work; they closed Conway away from the world, there are more sanctions, and they are even thinking of deporting Bruna and the others and they won't finish Beacon". Predator was silent but his eyes showed it all, Weiss thought she saw tears soaking into the cloth hiding his face. "How could you?" he said "why did you do that, I trusted you to do the right thing and make the right choices. How could you do this to us"! "Us?" Weiss was confused "what do you mean, us"? Predator caught his words too late, as the only clue to his identity slipped from his lips. Weiss grabbed the cloth wrapped around his face and pulled it away, and revealed the face of an old friend. Cobalt's face looked bruised and filthy, no thanks to his captors; and his tears washed away the filth and grime. "Do you realize how much I put on the line for this?" said Cobalt "when I grow up my people must trust me to be able to trust them; I have already failed in that regard because of what you did! Even if I wanted to go home, they would call me a traitor! I promised them a way to freedom and somehow, you made everything worse than it already was"! "I'm sorry" said Weiss "I know you trusted me but we can fix this, I just need to bring you back". "You stupid Schnee" said Cobalt "you are oblivious to what you have set in motion". "What do you mean?" Weiss asked "what's coming"? "Take a guess" Cobalt made his way to a window "I just hope you can stand the gravity of the consequences of what you have done. Goodbye Weiss, some friend you turned out to be". Cobalt slipped out of an open window and into the night. Weiss may have found a way to win back Bruna, but she lost Cobalt. "What consequences?" she wondered "we should worry about that back in Vale". "He ice queen" said Auburn as he came around the corner "I finished with the Oracle, where is our friend"? "He won't be helping us anymore" said Weiss "but we need to keep going, how is the Oracle"? "Ready to open" he replied "I just need some help getting it open". "Okay" said Weiss "let do it". Auburn put his fingers into a lip under the front plate, and Weiss put hers under the lip on the opposite side. The two pulled with little difficulty until the front plate fell to the floor to reveal the inner workings. Weiss was horrified to see what powered the machine, a young boy was wired to the machine. The bow had short black hair and wore a white haori, a black haori himo, a black hakama with white strips, and glasses. "Damn it Amaranth" said Auburn "what did they do to you". "Is this your other friend?" Weiss asked. "This is him" said Auburn "sorry about lying, I only wanted to see if I could bring him home too. I just hope he is still kicking; he is honor guard and all". "Why did they do this too him?" Weiss asked. "Amaranth was a special kid" said Auburn "aside from being the son of the head of the honor guard, his semblance was clairvoyance. He would randomly get visions of the future while sleeping and "pluck the threats of time to predict his opponent's moves". The White Fang probably thought hooking him up to a computer would allow them to see the future, time to pull the plug on this". Auburn reached to a wire input grafted into the back of Amaranth's neck and pulled the wires out. He then walked away from Amaranth and waited, but Amaranth didn't awake. "Are you sure he is even, alive?" Weiss asked. "He wouldn't be dead" said Auburn "These White Fang bastard do stuff to us straight out of a nightmare, he wouldn't just". Auburn was interrupted by Amaranth as life returned to his body, he took a deep breath as he returned to life. "Amaranth" said Auburn "you all together buddy"? Amaranth stumbled out of the Oracle, and struggled as he rose to his feet. "I am fine Auburn" said Amaranth "give me my sword". "Business as usual huh?" Auburn said sarcastically "okay stick in the mud; nice to see you too". Amaranth took his sword and fastened it to his belt. "Hello Weiss" said Amaranth "it is good to finally meet you in person". "Excuse me?" Weiss asked "this is the first time we have met". "I foresaw this day while I was imprisoned" said Amaranth "I also know why you are here and yes, Bruna will be grateful. But enough spoilers, we need to make our escape". Someone in the stair well began to bang on the door, the barricade could not hold for much longer. "Time to kick some ass like before" said Auburn "right Amaranth". "No" said Amaranth "do not draw your weapons". "Why the hell not?" said Auburn. "Trust me" said Amaranth "no matter who is on the other side of that door you will not attack them, regardless if they have wronged you and I or not. For once can you please trust my visions"? "Fine" said Auburn "I trust you". "Good" said Auburn "now allow me to open the door". Amaranth drew his katanna and twisted the handle, causing it to transform into a blade whip. He wrapped it around the door handle and pulled it right out of the frame. A large group entered the room. At the front was Bruna along with RBY, Phoena, and the rest of CBLT. Bruna was silent as she locked eyes with Weiss. Auburn and Blake briefly locked eyes, but Blake broke eye contact. "Now I know what you are all thinking" said Weiss "and to start I am sorry for making you all worry but, was it worth it"? Bruna walked right up to Weiss and stared down at her. Bruna embraced Weiss and squeezed tightly. "Thanks" said Bruna "you stupid, stupid Schnee".


	9. Liberation

"And that's what happened" said Weiss, as she caught everyone up on the events leading up to then. She conveniently left out what happened with Cobalt, still unsure of what he meant. "Wow Weiss" said Bruna "I don't know what to say here, but when we get back; that's when we will talk". Phoena noticed the nearby computer being wiped of its data. She quickly hooked up a thumb drive to it and began punching in codes. "What are you doing?" Lenna asked. "White Fang R&D facilities carry crucial information that is vital to our efforts to put them down" said Phoena "sometimes you find records for projects that occurred in other facilities if the records are still intact. Hopefully I got something useful". Phoena put the drive in her pocket and destroyed the computer. "I know you guys are happy to see each other again, but we have to move" said Tuscan "we are gonna have White Fang all over us very shortly". "So what is the plan then?" said Weiss "you do have a way to get us out right". "We give Ebony the signal to come pick us up" said Phoena "AA defenses will come offline and we can get out". "I'll get her on the line" said Bruna. Bruna pulled her scroll out and sent Phoena the message. "It's done" said Bruna "let's hit the courtyard and she will pick us up". At that moment the whole building began to shake, the floor and ceiling began to fall apart. "They're trying to bring the building down on us!" said Cerulea "we need to get out"! "There is no time!" said Blake. Paladin mechs had surrounded the base of the building and were taking down the supports. The whole building became a pile of rubble in mere seconds. "Search for the bodies!" one soldier shouted "the boss wants to make sure they are dead"! The paladins began to search the rubble, one made its way to a mound in the center. It began picking away at the rubble until the pile began to expand. The mech backed away and the pile exploded, the group was in the center unharmed. "Nice job with the shield Tuscan" said Phoena. "A small feat" said Tuscan "but we got bigger problems". More mechs and soldiers arrived, some soldiers were manning the rooftops. "Looks like we won't make it to the courtyard" said Ruby. "Then she will look for the gunfire" said Lenna. "Just like old times Bruna?" Auburn asked. "Just like old times" said Bruna "let's do this"! The group split up and charged into the White Fang. Bruna charged right into the fray weapons drawn towards a paladin. The tried to punch her but she rolled onto the arms using her skates and placed a C4 onto its joint. The detonation caused its arm to fly off, it turned around to face Bruna who was now behind it when a beam of light pierced the mech's armor, destroying it. She saw that Amaranth's sheathed sword had morphed into a bow. The bow had an electronic bowstring that when drawn back would charge and fire beams of light. Bruna turned to see two more paladins charging her, but Yang checked one in the leg and threw it into the other mech. Phoena used her ashes to tie down mechs as the others dealt with them. A large Bullhead flew overhead and tore into the charging White Fang soldiers. The soldiers dove for cover and the side door opens to reveal Ebony. Ebony's briefcase unfolded into a DMR and she took shots as the Bullhead slowly descended. "Get the hell in!" Ebony yelled. Everyone began to pile in with Weiss coming in last. Ebony ran into the cockpit and ascended as the White Fang began to fire on the Bullhead. "Somebody shut the bay door please?" Ebony yelled. Bruna tried to shut it but the incoming fire hit the mechanism, causing it to jam. Weiss came over to help Bruna pull it shut, and Ebony tried to get to a safe altitude. A rocket slammed into the side of the Bullhead, Weiss lost her balance and slid out of the Bullhead. Bruna grabbed Weiss by the wrist as she hung on for dear life. "Please don't let go!" said Weiss. "Don't worry" said Bruna "I don't". Another rocket hit the Bullhead and Bruna lost her grip, causing Weiss to fall to the ground way below. Ebony finally got beyond the reach of any defenses. "Let's get out of here!" said Ebony. "But what about Weiss?" Ruby asked "we can't leave her"! "I can't make another pass like that" said Ebony "I'll get shot out of the sky". Before the argument could continue, somebody jumped from the still open door and back into the fray.

Weiss was knocked unconscious by the fall, and the soldiers slowly approached. Their leader grabbed the comatose heiress by the collar and brought her to his eye level, it was Adam Taurus. "They said to keep you alive" he said "but you have proven to be quite a headache". He turned to his soldiers as the surrounded him. "Let's make this a message!" he yelled "a message to all those who stand in our way". Adam placed Weiss on the ground under him and drew his sword and held the blade above, about to drive it through Weiss. A chain of explosions ripped through the soldiers around him, none were left alive when the dust settled. Adam stared at his new opponent. "Well this is a surprise" he said. "I guess so" said Bruna "I'm just full of them". "Why did you come to save her?" he asked "she ruined your people's live as much as ours! We should be seeking revenge together, instead you abandoned us to this"! "Sure we are just as pissed at you are" said Bruna "but that's when the similarities end. We don't kill innocent people, we cut down everyone in our way". "Nobody is innocent in this" said Adam "everyone is guilty, especially those Schnees"! "So that's how you justify this to yourself?" said Bruna "everyone deserves to suffer just because you do? What a pitiful way to view the world you live in. I don't blame you for how this all turned out, but that doesn't mean I won't kill you". "Let me see if you have the guts to try" said Adam, as his red sword was pointed directly at Bruna. Adam lunged forward and his blade came down, but Bruna rolled out of the way. She leaped above him and came down like a drill; Adam blocked the attack and deflected her off. Bruna dissipated and appeared behind Adam, her blades ready to remove his head. Adam crouched at the last second and sheathed his sword and aimed it at Bruna, the handle impacting with Bruna's forehead. He then grasped his sword in air and cut upward, cracks could be seen in Bruna's brown aura. He then kicked Bruna across the courtyard into a pile of rubble. Bruna's aura was already weakened from the other fights that day, and was on the verge of giving out. "You Conways are so self-righteous" said Adam "you think you're the heroes as you leave behind those you follow exactly what you did. You are no better than the Schnees"! "Your wrong" said Bruna "we never abandoned the Faunus, we abandoned the White Fang". "What's the difference?" said Adam. "You're not fighting for the Faunus" said Bruna "you're fighting for yourselves. If you truly cared about the Faunus, Lenna wouldn't be where she is right now". Adam silently walked over to Bruna raised his sword over her, and she just stared him dead in the eyes. Adam stabbed at Bruna, but a large black mass got in the middle and took the blow. It was a large Grimm, but to Bruna the beast was familiar enough. Adam's sword was inside Cobalt, who had transformed into a Balroth. Cobalt wrapped his claws around Adam and threw him across the compound until he was out of sight. "Cobalt" said Bruna, she hugged her monster of a brother. "There is no time" Cobalt pushed her off "more Fang will be here soon and Adam will definitely be with them". "I'm not leaving you behind again" said Bruna "I want you to come back". "I want nothing more than to come back to you guys" said Cobalt "but things have changed. I have heard some interesting things while I was locked up here not to mention how Weiss has, complicated things. But I promise, you will see me again soon". "Promise?" said Bruna. "I promise" Cobalt, who gave her a monster hug in return. "Now go" said Cobalt "I will hold the line". Bruna lifted Weiss over her shoulder and Ebony's Bullhead came to rest to pick them up. Bruna looked at her brother one last time before the door shut and they flew off. Leaving behind Bruna's monster of a brother with an oncoming mob of White Fang. But as their Bullhead sped off, another Bullhead took off from the forest and followed them; it was decorated with the Schnee emblem.

The group had congregated in Fox's office for debriefing. Everyone eagerly exchanged information with Fox about the events during the escape, but Bruna, Ruby and Bruna were off in the corner separated from the group. "So he came back" said Weiss "after all that happened". "If it wasn't for him, we wouldn't have made it out" said Bruna "and you know his secret". "Which is why it's very important you don't tell anybody" said Ruby "it could get him in trouble". "Lips are sealed" said Weiss "I just wish he got out with us". "He will be fine" said Bruna "but Weiss, let me be crystal clear. I don't quite know what to make about the stupid stunt you just pulled, but give me some time to sort through this". "Okay" said Weiss "I'll wait". "Thanks" said Bruna. "Okay assholes listen up!" said Fox, still wearing a mask "as much as I enjoy everyone's company, I must politely ask everyone to get out. I am a hardened criminal, so that means you guys need to get out. Ebony will take you kids home and let me be clear here, none of you know I am here. Otherwise, dead men tell no tales". "Let's move then" said Ebony "my Bullhead is ready to take you all back to Vale, so let's hustle". The group began to file out when alarms began to ring across the station, and Fox's map table pulled up a map of the facility. "A raid?" said Fox "are you kidding"? "What do you mean a raid?" said Phoena. "Schnee private forces are here" said Fox "how the hell did they find me"? "Attention Fox!" said some woman over a loudspeaker "we know you are inside and are coordinating with White Fang in regards to Weiss's kidnapping. Surrender yourself and your equipment immediately"! "Well look who finally found me" said Fox, he pushed an intercom button "like hell I will! How about you come inside and get me Snowflake"! "Let me go outside" said Weiss "I'll tell them to stop". "Bad idea" said Bruna "you might get out of here, but they will kill the rest of us". "No they won't" said Weiss. "Bruna is right" said Fox "they know I have their secrets, dirty secrets that could smear their pristine image. They won't want any evidence that I may have "corrupted" you. But don't worry, I have a better plan. Just follow me on this".

The scene cuts outside with Schnee soldiers approaching a garage attached to the base. "She wants us to breach through here" said one soldier "get a charge on the door". One soldier advanced quickly and stuck the charge to the door, then ran behind cover. "1, 2, 3, breach!" he said. The garage door blew open and Fox's APC flew through the hole the explosion created, speeding out of the compound. "Get on the Bullheads" said a soldier "we have to catch him". The Bullheads took off in pursuit of Fox, while Ebony's Bullhead took off and escaped while they were distracted. "Are you sure Fox will be okay?" Blake asked. "He will be fine" said Ebony "this kind of stuff happens all the time and he still makes it out alright. And no need to worry about any info about this meeting getting out, Fox has gotten pretty good at scrubbing our servers. We should be home free once I kick the engines into; shit". An alarm rang out in the cockpit signaled that there was somebody on them. "Looks like somebody didn't take the bait" said Ebony "and they want to talk, how the hell they found my frequency unless. I think I know whose calling". Ebony pressed the button and opened communications. "Nice try with the decoy Fox" said the woman on the other end "but I've wised up to your tricks by now". "Well hello Winter" said Ebony "as tenacious as ever". "Did she say Winter?" said Weiss. "Tenacious?" Winter asked "your boss has stolen from my family and the Atlas military for the last time. I am taking you both". "Sorry to break it to you" said Ebony "but Fox was in the APC that drove off. You got the wrong flight snowflake". "My men are already surrounding the APC" said Winter "I am required to take him alive, but you Ebony. Are wanted for several counts of assassination and murder; I can shoot you down if I want". "I'm pretty sure that would be a bad idea" said Ebony "I know your sister is missing, maybe we can arrange something". "I already know where she is" said Winter "first I'll kill you, then those Faunus bastards who took her". Cannon rounds soared around Ebony's Bullhead as Winter's opened fire Ebony was trying her best to dodge as a short burst on her lightly armored craft would have ended her. "Let me talk to her!" said Weiss "that's my sister"! "Give it a shot" said Ebony "you can stall her while we get up to speed". Weiss hit the radio and reopened the channel with Winter. "Winter it's me!" Weiss said "Fox helped rescue me from the White Fang. Please stop shooting us"! There was a moment of pause as Winter stopped firing. "You won't fool me!" said Winter "I am wise to your tricks. Prepare to die Ebony"! The radio cut out as Winter shut off her radio. "Worth a shot anyway" said Ebony "now sit back down and buckle the hell up". "Even if we speed off" said Tuscan "we can't risk her following us back to Vale". "We can't kill her!" said Weiss. "We might not have a choice" said Ebony "I'll maneuver behind her to shoot her down". Weiss drew her weapon and held it inches from Ebony's face "I won't let you". It didn't take long for Ebony to realize her situation. "Fine" said Ebony "who else knows how to fly"? "Let me up there" said Tuscan. "Get up here and keep her steady" said Ebony "I'm going on the roof". Ebony grabbed her briefcase and opened the side hatch while Tuscan took the wheel. Ebony put on one of Fox's masks and climbed on top of the Bullhead. Her briefcase unfolded into a DMR, and she leveled her aim as cannon shells whizzed by. Winter's Bullhead was directly behind them, Ebony was very tempted to take the kill shot but knew the rest inside would probably not let sleeping dogs lie. So she drew a bead on one of the wing mounted engines, she fired and quickly took out the other engine. This sent Winter's craft careening into the ground, but not exploding. Ebony got back inside the Bullhead and shut the door, pulling off her mask and getting in the pilot seat. "She'll survive" said Ebony "bitch is stubborn". "Are you sure?" Weiss asked. Ebony opened the radio line with Winter "hey Snow Angel, you still breathing"? "What insult is this?" Winter said "don't pretend you care about everything you have done"! "Trust me I don't" Ebony hung up and kicked the Bullhead into afterburner and flew towards Vale.


	10. The Return

The scene is a meeting hall in Vale, as a press conference was called. Weiss's return to Vale alongside Conways and a Huntress following her disappearance caused quite a stir. Phoena had called a press conference to try to put any press to rest before things got out of hand, she stood over a podium ready to answer any questions. "My name is Phoena Flowers and I was the Huntress in charge of Weiss Schnee's extraction from the White Fang compound" said Phoena "as this was a covert operation many of the details regarding the rescue are classified. I will answer any questions I am able". "Weiss Schnee was reported missing yesterday and you showed up back in Vale with her early this morning" said a reporter "how did you react so quickly to the hostage situation"? "Information regarding Weiss's location was passed along immediately upon her detainment" Phoena replied "this allowed me to react quickly". "Why didn't you bring Atlas special forces along with you?' said another reporter "don't you report directly to General Ironwood"? "The reasons for that decision are classified" said Phoena "however we were able to procure the aid of the Conway royal families and Conway Special Forces to pull the operation off". "Was the Schnee family notified that the Conways were involved in the rescue?" somebody asked. "Classified" said Phoena "no more questions, thank you for coming out". Phoena descended from the podium to a waiting Bruna and Weiss, who followed her to her car outside. "Do we have everyone's stories straight?" Phoena asked when they all got in the car "we can't risk making this situation worse". "I don't feel right about this" said Weiss. "If we tell everyone what really happened, we could see tensions rise even further" said Phoena "people will think Conway tried to steal you away. And Winter shooting at us doesn't make this any better to explain". "Loss lips sink ships" said Bruna "you got it". "Now let's head back to Beacon" said Phoena "and see if I'm fired or not".

Back at Beacon another back and forth was taking place between Tuscan, Cerulea, Ozpin, and Ironwood. "We are merely asking that Auburn and Amaranth get them to stay in Beacon until we can transport them back to Conway" said Tuscan "I assure you what Ironwood says is false as they pose no such security threat". "One is a member of the Royal Guard and the other is a former merc" said Ironwood "we can't trust either, it is as simple as that". "Have you forgotten that I am also a member of the guard?" said Cerulea "and I pose no such threat to your operations here General". "She has you there James" said Ozpin "however we most definitely cannot allow Auburn to stay". "Why not?" Tuscan asked. "Auburn was exiled from Conway due to criminal behavior" said Ironwood "which we are still trying to receive the documentation of, and we have no way of returning Amaranth to Conway". "Have you forgotten already James?" said Ozpin "an ambassador from Conway will be arriving today, didn't you schedule this meeting yourself. Amaranth can return to Conway along with her". "Very well then" said Ironwood "however Auburn is not allowed to leave Beacon in the meantime, I have already sent some of the professors to detain him". Tuscan's scroll began to ring, Lenna was calling him. "Lenna what is it?" said Tuscan "I am meeting with Ozpin right now". "Auburn left through the window after Glynda barged in" said Lenna "he is already gone". "That huntress is still chasing him" Amaranth said in the background "however she will not catch him, we will probably not see Auburn for quite some time". "Thanks for the update" said Tuscan, he hung up. "I got the message from Glynda" said Ironwood "she lost the boy". "Amaranth can stay for now" said Ozpin "being this is my school it is my decision". "Fine then" said Ironwood "you both may leave". "Thank you Ozpin" said Tuscan. The two moved for the office door as Phoena was making her way in. Once the Tuscan and Cerulea had left, Ironwood's anger became quite visible. "Do you expect me to believe what you said to the press?" said Ironwood. "I did what was necessary to save Weiss" said Phoena. "And what exactly are the full details of your little operation aside from bringing a bunch of students?" said Ironwood. "Conway Special Forces assisted in the operation" said Phoena "and I don't think they want me talking about that". "It seems your insubordination knows no bounds, and this is clearly my fault" said Ironwood "it was an error to disregard the opinion of your former superiors that you would be unfit to return to duty. Therefore, by the end of the week your position as my advisor ends and you will once again no longer be permitted to operate as a huntress". "You don't get to decide that!" said Phoena "as a huntress I get top operate as I choose, you know those rules". "Putting children in harm's way is not a tactic that can be sanctioned" said Glynda "along with cooperating with a foreign power that is outside the hunter network without permission. Ironwood was also the one who reinstated your license and inducted you into his Hunter Special Forces, which causes the rules to change in regards to your license". "Fine then!" said Phoena "but good luck replacing me. There are not a ton of hunters out there with my knowledge on the White Fang"! "That is covered" said Ironwood "Winter Schnee is set to replace you as my advisor". "Her?" said Phoena "she has no knowledge on White Fang aside from how much she hates Faunus. This isn't about replacing me, this is all a bunch of Schnee bootlicking huh, is the General running out of shiny new toys"? "I think is conversation is better had in private" said Ozpin "Phoena needs to be on hand to escort the Conway Ambassador to my office. And I think we should let her catch her breath". "Fine, but one more thing" said Phoena "about the whole reason I came back in the first place, did you find anything about Agent Black". "Conway owns all the files on Agent Black" said Ironwood "and heightened tensions have made communication impossible with the Viscount". "Fine" said Phoena "I was done being your errand girl anyway". Phoena made her way out the door. "It's a pity she could be controlled" said Ironwood "she would have made an ideal candidate". "We didn't need to control her" said Ozpin "she just needed to be ready, and judging by the files she was the most ready we could find". "If we were gonna hand her that kind of power, she needs to take orders well" said Ironwood. "It's not like we have a list Ironwood" said Glynda "so what do we do now"? "We find somebody else" said Ozpin "before it's too late".

Bruna and Lenna were alone in their dorm, as Tuscan had gone to the garden to meet up with somebody and Cerulea went for a walk. Lenna was tinkering with her shotgun while Bruna laid out on her bed. "I'm gonna do it" said Bruna. "Gonna do what?" said Lenna. "I'm gonna ask out Cerulea" said Bruna "for real". "Didn't you take her to the dance?" Lenna asked. "I don't think she got the idea" said Bruna "tonight I am just gonna ask her straight". "Speaking of which" said Lenna "I think she is straight". "Yeah, but I better get it out of the way" said Bruna "I think she knows I've been staring". "At what?" Lenna asked. "Everything" said Bruna.

Ruby had met up with Tuscan in the garden, Ruby apparently wanted to box with him. Tuscan had decided not to where his armor and instead wore a blue tank top and black gym shorts. "Hello Tuscan" said Ruby "glad you could make it". "Hello Ruby" he said "why didn't you change too"? Ruby was still wearing her regular combat clothes. "I'll change when we get there". "Okay than" said Tuscan "shall we be off than"? "Hold on" said Ruby "any second now; there she is"! Yang had just entered the garden, and seemed surprised that Tuscan was there. She was wearing a yellow tank top and black gym shorts. "Ruby, why is he here?" Yang asked "I thought you wanted to box". "Nope" said Ruby "I want you two to be friends again. Weiss and Bruna aren't fighting anymore, and you two were good friends before all that. Can you two please make up"? "So this was your surprise than" said Tuscan. "Yang has been hiding it" said Ruby "but she hated this whole thing, she wanted to be friends again. Isn't that right Yang"? "Is this true?" said Tuscan. "Tuscan let me be straight with you" said Yang "I really hate hating people; especially when they were my perfect sparring partner. I just thought you were the one who didn't want to be friends". "Well" said Tuscan "isn't this a ridiculous misunderstanding". "Success!" said Ruby "now that you two have made up, it's time for step two". Ruby pulled out a gym bag which held Tuscan and Yang's boxing gloves; she quickly forced the gloves onto both of them. "I think now would be a healthy time for the both of you to punch yourselves into a new future and a better friendship. "Ruby" said Tuscan "I think this is hardly necess-". Yang punched Tuscan in the face before he could finish talking. "What's the matter?" Yang asked "afraid you will lose"? Yang went to punch him again, but Tuscan grabbed her wrist and pulled her down. He then punched her in the gut, but Yang was unfazed and used her other hand to push him off. Tuscan went on offence this time and went for a jab, but was blocked and Yang came across and hit him in the ribs. Tuscan regained his footing and went to swing again, but stopped when he noticed something behind Yang. Confused, Yang and Ruby looked and found that a women in a brown hooded robe was watching them. Her hair was short and was bleach white. She must have been quite old, as wrinkles were all over her face. "Who is that?" Yang asked. "Headmaster Nova?" Tuscan said in surprise. "Good day Tuscan" she said "glad to see my apprentice has been keeping busy.


End file.
